22
The prevalence of disorder in this sample is extremely high, higher than any other comparable Zimbabwean sample, but
similar to samples from displaced persons in a war zone (26-27). This is perhaps unsurprising, given that the war
veterans sample is composed of a selected group of persons with a clear history of trauma, either from war injury or
torture. The high prevalence is comparable with other studies of torture survivors.
Table 6 shows the prevalence of severe disorders amongst the sample that proved positive on the SRQ-20. Severity is
indicated by SRQ-29 scores in excess of 10 out of 20, and the veterans' sample shows a very high percentage with
clinically significant psychological disorders.
Table 6.
Prevalence of severe psychological disorders
in war veterans: SRQ-20 scores.
(n=129)
CASES
129
>10/20
46
<10/20
83
PERCENTAGE
PREVALENCE
64.3%
Table 7 below describes the clinical measures taken from the war veterans, summarising the data taken from the
structured interview (Present Health Status), the SRQ-20, and the CAPS.
Table 7.
Clinical measures in war veterans.
(n=53)
Number of physical symptoms
Number of pychological symptoms
SRQ-20(total score)
SRQ-20(depression score)
SRQ-20(anxiety score)
CAPS(frequency score)
CAPS(intensity score)
5.8
11.2
5.6
23.9
MEAN S.D
4.9
2.3
2.3
3.5
2.4
4.2
1.6
22.5
11.7
12.6
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